| Start: | Aug 25, '09 |
| Location: | Paris, France |
The German occupation of France in World War II occurred during the period between May 1940 and December 1944. As a result of the defeat of the French and its Allies in the Battle of France, the French cabinet sought a cessation of hostilities. An armistice was signed June 22, 1940 at Compiègne. Under its terms, the north and west of France were occupied by the German Army. The remaining third of the country was directly controlled by a French government located at Vichy headed by the aging Maréchal Philippe Pétain. Both the unoccupied and the occupied portions of France remained legally under the control of the Vichy government.
When the Allies invaded North Africa on November 8, 1942, the Germans and Italians immediately occupied the remaining free part of France. The liberation of France began on June 6, 1944 with the Allied forces landing on D-Day and the Battle of Normandy and ended in December.
Paris itself was liberated August 25, 1944. It is remembered as "Freedom Tuesday."
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